How to Get Into YC: The Spring 26' FULL GUIDE 🔥
The ultimate kit of proven strategies, accepted applications, YC partner-backed guides, and startup ideas they want to fund right now
The YC Spring 2026 deadline is approaching fast.
Y Combinator isn’t just about funding. It’s a launchpad.
You get $500K on founder-first terms, mentorship people like Sam Altman or partners who helped scale Airbnb, Stripe, and Scale AI; and access to a private network of 9,000+ alumni with $85B raised in follow-on capital.
If you’re early, scrappy, and building something people want, this is the most asymmetric bet you can make.
So I put together the updated YC Spring 2026 Application Pack.
All curated from real accepted applications, founder breakdowns, and current YC partner guidance to help you submit a clear, competitive application for this batch.
Framer is giving early-stage startups a full year of the Pro Plan: completely free.
Why Framer?
Framer is the design-first web builder that helps startups launch fast. Join hundreds of YC founders already building on Framer.
Who’s Eligible?
Pre-seed and seed-stage startups.
Offer available to new Framer users only.
What You Get:
✅ 1 year of Framer’s Pro Plan ($360 value)
✅ Fast, professional site — no dev team needed
✅ Scales with your startup — from MVP to full site
Spots are limited — apply to claim your free year.
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Trending right now: How Base44 was bootstrapped and sold for $80M in 9 months
What’s Inside the YC X26 Application Pack:
1. The 13 YC Application Principles That Actually Matter
A tactical guide to what YC really looks for, backed by advice from Paul Graham, Dalton Caldwell, and founders who got in successfully.
It includes the exact frameworks, application breakdowns, and insider advice founders used to get into Dropbox, GitLab, Martin, and more.
2. 50+ Successful Applications (Dropbox, GitLab, Paystack...)
A curated sheet with real YC applications from previous batches, including legacy names like Dropbox and GitLab, and newer ones like Paystack and KeyWords AI.
Use them as references to model your own.
3. YC Referral & Outreach Lists (Partners + Alumni)
Two separate private lists:
A YC partner list with emails, LinkedIn, Twitter/X, sector interests, and background
A 100+ YC alumni founder list from recent batches, mapped by company, sector, and focus
YC is huge on referrals. Built specifically for targeted outreach and potential referrals.
4. Question-by-Question Answer Guide by Martin, Bolto, Shogun and Fluently’s founders.
A doc-style walkthrough of the YC application, with practical advice on how to answer each question, straight from founders who got in (Martin, Bolto, Shogun, Fluently).
No fluff. Just clear, tactical pointers for every field.
5. YC Latest “Request for Startups”
A curated doc of the sectors and startup ideas they’re actively trying to fund right now.
Use this to sharpen your positioning or pitch a better idea entirely.
If you’re applying to YC this current batch, this is the most complete, battle-tested prep you’ll find.
Everything you need to write a top-tier application in one place.
Subscribe today to unlock the full Fundraising Pack
You’ll also get access to:
💰 The Family Office List: 1,000 active family offices investing in startups worldwide — with details on check size, stage, region, and direct contacts.
𝕏 How to Raise on Twitter — The Twitter Angel Investor List: 1000+ top angels actively writing cheques — all on X.
📘 The AI Founders Playbook: Lessons from OpenAI, Sequoia, Nvidia, LangChain, and Ramp on how to build and scale AI startups.
📈 How to Get to Product-Market Fit: A step-by-step guide with real success cases like Notion, Canva, and Stripe.
💸 The Angel Investor List: 1,000 of the world’s most active angel investors, including contact info and stage preferences.
🔥 70 Pitch Decks That Raised Over $1B in 2024: The best decks from top startups that actually raised big. Design, story, structure—all decoded.
🚀 50+ Pitch Decks from the World’s Most Successful Startups: Airbnb, Dropbox, Uber, DoorDash, Reddit, and more. The originals.
🧠 Inside the Prompt Stack: How top AI startups like Cursor, Devin, Same.dev, and Replit are building moats without training their own models.
The Sequoia Fundraising Pack: The ultimate vault of legendary pitch decks, internal Sequoia guides, and tactical resources to help you raise like the best
🟧 As an extra: I compiled a list with ALL YC partners and another with 100+ YC alumni founders. Referrals are huge in YC. These including emails, Twitter/X links, conversation starters… enjoy ;)
Just keep it secret 🤫
